Anyone use this temp controller off ebay?

I'm looking for a temperature controller for my fermentation chamber. This one only displays temp in deg. C (not a big problem) but it has a heating and cooling stage which is a requirement for my needs. Anyone using one of these?

http://cgi.ebay.com/Mini-Digital-Te...emQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item414e918e00

Just got mine today! I'm going to use it to regulate temperatures on my taps. Mounting it into the fridge to control the coolant pump. Could be used sometime later to control the fridge. I believe the fridge pulls less than 10 amps, I'd have to look if I plan to use it for that in the future, or hook up a bigger relay to it.

What about preventing short cycling of the compressor?

Edit:

Uppon further reading the controller has a 1 - 10 minute delay you can set before turning the heat or cooling back on, thus preventing the short cycling.

Pretty cool for 20 bucks.

When your compressor initially kicks on it most likely will draw more than 10 amps for a very very short period of time. Steady state you should be fine but its that start that will cause issues.

TheFlyingBeer said:

When your compressor initially kicks on it most likely will draw more than 10 amps for a very very short period of time. Steady state you should be fine but its that start that will cause issues.

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I forgot to say that I'm using a mini fridge for cooling rated at 1.4A. I've controlled it with a 10 relay already so I know that the switching should be OK.

Can someone measure the OD of the temp sensor? I wanna use it in one of the thermowells from Brewers Hardware if it will fit.

this controller works great for controlling my keezer. the link provided above has a lot of people who have successfully used it for keezers, kegerators, and fermenters.

Mongo64 said:

I forgot to say that I'm using a mini fridge for cooling rated at 1.4A. I've controlled it with a 10 relay already so I know that the switching should be OK.

Can someone measure the OD of the temp sensor? I wanna use it in one of the thermowells from Brewers Hardware if it will fit.

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Just got mine in the mail today. Haven't had the opportunity to play with it but it feels good and solid, and looks nice as well. The OD of the sensor is 3/16", but I would go with 1/4" to be safe and for ease of use.

I've built my control box around it for a ferment chamber, but it isn't in use yet. I think it kicks butt though.

Thanks for pointing this out, I missed the other thread. I just started a DIY temp controller build using a $20 digital AC thermostat but needed to spend another $20 on a relay. I just ordered this and will be returning my other thermostat..

Thanks!

I'm using one of these on my keezer, and it works fine. I think I might get another one for my fermentation fridge and sell the single stage ranco I'm currently using. I just need to make sure my old fridge doesn't draw too much power first.

hey... that's pretty sweet. I have my ferm chamber controlled by an old Johnson controller for the fridge and a line-level thermostat from Lowe's to kick on a 40W bulb when it gets too chilly in there, but I sometimes have to tweak the knobs on both to prevent them from fighting against one another.

I might have to buy one of these and sell the Johnson!

Mine arrived in about 2 weeks. I used a plastic container for the case until I find something better (this was enough to get me going).

dont be cheap when it comes to your beer stuff, a batch takes a long time and practice to get good at it. buy equipment that will work reliably. i bought my temp controller for 65 bucks and couldnt be happier.

kegtoe said:

dont be cheap when it comes to your beer stuff, a batch takes a long time and practice to get good at it. buy equipment that will work reliably. i bought my temp controller for 65 bucks and couldnt be happier.

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Ah ha, thus making your temp controller 35 dollars better than the ebay one.

I think it's not the price that counts, it's how well it works...I've seen plenty of testimonials praising this thing. By your logic, a $400 lab grade temp controller would make 6x better beer than your $65 one.

I have to laugh at some of the people in the really long thread about these controllers. By the time they buy cases etc to hold everything they are at almost the same price as some of the nicer ones.

I wasnt speaking to "price is better", just that you should buy one that fits the job and is well made. If you find one for a cheap price and works for your application then go for it. I just wasn't sure if an aquariam temp controller would give you the same control and longevity that say the johnson or love controllers have.

Good luck with yoru builds.

If it's good enough to keep tropical fish alive, it's good enough for beer

The only downside for me is its in C, not F.

BrewNinja1 said:

The only downside for me is its in C, not F.

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Unless you expect to be messing with the setting a lot, this shouldn't be much of a problem.

70*F is about 21*C
60*F is about 16*C

Those are the only two references I have memorized. A 10*F range in terms of a 5*C range, so I can guesstimate settings in between.

kegtoe said:

I just wasn't sure if an aquariam temp controller would give you the same control and longevity that say the johnson or love controllers have.

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Just to point out something that everyone familiar with ebay should be aware of --- Just because an ebay seller put "aquarium" in the product description does not necessarily mean that is in fact what the manufacture necessarily intended, just what keywords the seller wanted to find his auction. These STC-1000 temperature controllers are general purpose controllers. The ebay seller in question is targeting people that are into keeping aquariums as a hobby. If I was willing to buy them 200 at a time for $13 each I could sell them for $20 each as "aquarium temperature controllers" or "humidor temperature controllers" or for any other kind of hobby that requires temperature control that I wanted to target. I would probably target a hobby I knew something about so that when people asked questions I would likely know that answer within the common uses in that hobby.

Sorry for being long winded.

BrewNinja1 said:

I have to laugh at some of the people in the really long thread about these controllers. By the time they buy cases etc to hold everything they are at almost the same price as some of the nicer ones.

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I don't see how you come to that conclusion.

The controller is $20.
Power cord to supply the box $5.
Outlet to plug heater and cooler into is about $3.
A box to house it all is less than $10.

I'm coming up with less than $40 to build one of these. Where are you seeing a controller that can do both heating and cooling for close to that price? The Johnson and Ranco controllers are significantly more expensive than this and can only be put into one mode at a time, either heating or cooling.

Don't need a case, it will be mounted directly in the fridge door...

I was ready to shell out $128.00 for a Ranco dual stage.
I ran across the original post the day before I was ready to take the plunge and went with the aquarium contoller instead.
Could not be happier, this thing works on my full size fridge.
Savings $108.00. Even if it breaks, I'll get another one

conpewter said:

Don't need a case, it will be mounted directly in the fridge door...

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Hmmmm..... how are you connecting the power to the fridge? Are you running the fridge power cord around from the back and then into the cabinet or something?

you still have a case... it's just 18 cubic feet in size.

Great_Neck_Brewer said:

I was ready to shell out $128.00 for a Ranco dual stage.
I ran across the original post the day before I was ready to take the plunge and went with the aquarium contoller instead.
Could not be happier, this thing works on my full size fridge.
Savings $108.00. Even if it breaks, I'll get another one

Click to expand...

Ditto, I was in the same exact situation. Mine works perfect on my 7 cu ft. chest freezer I use as my ferm. chamber. It's been running that way for almost 2 months now, and has worked perfectly all along.

Walker said:

Hmmmm..... how are you connecting the power to the fridge? Are you running the fridge power cord around from the back and then into the cabinet or something?

you still have a case... it's just 18 cubic feet in size.

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I suspect he will hack into the fridges existing thermostat wiring, essentially replacing the fridges thermostat with this one. See John Beers thread https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/my-new-fermentation-cabinets-66926/

camiller said:

I suspect he will hack into the fridges existing thermostat wiring, essentially replacing the fridges thermostat with this one. See John Beers thread https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/my-new-fermentation-cabinets-66926/

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This is probably what I would do if I was to use this on a fermentation chamber. Instead I'm planning using it to control a pump/fan/heat exchanger that will run cool water to my taps to keep them and the lines cool. So far I see there being an issue with the probe length... not sure if I can replace that with a longer probe/wire

If not I'll either still use it (just get it as far through the tubing as possible) or I'll use it in my fermentation chamber, as suggested, and use the Ranco that is on that as my pump controller.